One of my most favourite days of the TCS academic year is the first full day of classes, in early September, when the entire student population is gathered together in The Memorial Chapel.
Traditionally, one of my other favourite days of the year is a Sunday in the middle of June. But, not this year.
Allow me to explain.
When asking about a young person’s future, the traditional question adults often pose to teenagers is, “What do you want to do when you grow up?”
If you have heard me speak on this topic before, you will know that I think that this, albeit well-intentioned, question is out of date.
For one, the question historically was focussed, understandably, on what a young person envisioned to be their chosen profession. The issue is that, today in particular, most kids don’t have an answer to that question. Ideas and realities around work, workplaces and career paths have greatly evolved.
Further, this conversation-starter assumes that a child’s choice of career would help the adult better understand the adolescent. After all, you can get a better sense of what a kid is all about by their career choice, right? Nope, not always! And this is particularly not the case these days.
Fresh off the heels of Reunion Weekend 2022, Head of Junior School Jennifer Reid reflects on the connection to Boulden House, as heard through the fond memories of Junior School students past.
Written by guest blogger, Mrs. Jennifer Reid
Last weekend was a whirlwind of activity as alumni were welcomed back onto campus for Reunion Weekend. Boulden House was included in the itinerary as an opportunity to tour with teachers and students present. I was thrilled to welcome 38 alumni, along with their partners, children and grandchildren, into the building. Some were proud Junior School grads from five years ago; others boarded in Boulden House 50 years ago. All had stories and fond memories to share about their time at TCS and, in particular, in Boulden House.
If you were to examine our website, marketing brochures or our strategic plan, for example, you would not see or read about Breakfast Olympics at Trinity College School. Typically, it is not an event that the School widely promotes.
In fact, it is not an event that I typically champion. However, I felt differently about Breakfast Olympics this year.
Ms. McClure, TCS’s Grade 5 homeform teacher and director of the Junior School Tottenham Players’ most recent stage production, shares her insights on the incredible lessons that can be learned through theatre.
Written by guest blogger, Ms. Heather McClure
As teachers, we are always looking to hone our practice, improve our skills and learn about new research in the field of educating young people. As I sat down to write this guest blog post, I pondered what I could put out there of interest or value. I landed on “invisible gloves.” Stay with me!
I still love to receive greeting cards or cards of any type, regardless of the occasion. I am not sure that anyone sends postcards anymore, but I used to love receiving those too. Actually, in my youth, I loved to send postcards; probably because I was somewhere warm, international and on vacation and the intended recipient of the postcard was not. Looking back, I suppose it was an “old school” version of an Instagram or Facebook post.
On the subject of cards, I am thinking that, maybe, it’s time to change the term “report card.”
Or at least drop the term “report.” It sounds so ominous. The reality is that the vast majority of report cards that I read are more like a welcomed greeting card and better than any postcard I have received. Nowadays, teachers are far more apt to be positive and effusive about a child’s talents, personality, work ethic, engagement and successes. The days of fearing the arrival of the report card, I think, are generally gone.
This week, TCS’s Director of Guidance & Wellbeing (and registered psychotherapist (qualifying)), Ms. Koekkoek, is well-positioned to share valuable insights into anxiety, a timely topic as our Senior School students look to approaching exams.
Written by guest blogger, Ms. Krista Koekkoek
Our school counselling offices have been busy places these last few weeks. Students are delighted to be back on campus and are keen to tell us stories of their first rugby tackle, house dinner attire or interhouse visit (where they were, for the first time in two years, permitted to visit each other’s boarding residence). There is joy in these moments of sharing – laughter, delight, surprise – but there are also threads of apprehension.
The last time a live, in-person Speech Day took place at TCS “under the big top,” was on June 14, 2019. Thus, when we, as a school, gather in two months on Friday, June 17th, to recognize and celebrate the end of the 2021-2022 academic year, and the graduating class of ’22 in particular, it will have been three years, more than 1,000 days, since a previous Speech Day ceremony.
Little wonder then, that a “veteran” Grade 11 TCS student asked me last week, “What is Speech Day?”
The question was a vivid reminder of how many events and rituals our kids have missed as a result of the pandemic. Nothing tragic or monumental, but the various cancelled or modified events during TCS’s spring season, in particular, have impacted the student and staff (and parent!) experience at the School on the Hill.
The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall are scheduled to visit Canada this May. TCS diplomas will be handed out on Speech Day as part of the Prize Giving ceremony in June. Pope Francis is visiting Canada this July.
If you are a Roman Catholic monarchist with a child in Grade 12 at TCS, summer 2022 has the makings of a most memorable few months on your calendar!
Of all the Christian religious observances, Easter is generally considered as the most important. So what’s all this talk about a bunny who delivers chocolate eggs?
As a child, the Easter Bunny made the least sense to me as a symbol of any occasion. Santa Claus looks like a real person and, at the age of six, I could not calculate the mathematical challenges inherent with delivering gifts all over the world via reindeer-pulled sleds and a chimney-based delivery system. But, a fluffy human-sized Easter Bunny? To me, that simply did not compute.
Plus, I knew that bunnies didn’t lay eggs. It was impossible! And, laying chocolate eggs? Now, that was ridiculous! I was suspicious that the adults weren’t telling us kids the whole truth.
